The conveyance of hot or cold fluids through piping and piping assemblies normally makes it desirable to insulate and cover the piping. Usually, this involves wrapping or placing an insulation blanket over the exterior of a pipe fitting and covering the insulation.
Early efforts at insulating a pipe fitting consisted of spreading cement in place on the exterior of the pipe fittings and then adhering a fabric covering over it. Prior art procedures have progressed since then to include aluminum and plastic covers for the pipe fittings, used in conjunction with insulation materials such as fiberglass blankets or urethane foam. In some instances, the insulation blanket is adhered to the inside surface of the cover such that the insulation and cover are joined in place at the same time. In other instances, the insulation is first formed or placed around the pipe fittings and the aluminum or plastic covers are then secured in place over the insulation.
Improvements in pipe fitting covers are described in several patents, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,495,629 (Botsolas, February 1970), U.S. Pat. No. 3,732,894 (Botsolas, May 1973), U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,308 (Botsolas, November 1985) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,509 (Botsolas, May 1986), all of which are incorporated herein by reference, in which a variety of pipe fittings have been provided with standardized one or two-piece protective covers. U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,308, for example, provides a pipe fitting cover formed of two half sections, having toroidally contoured sections on each end, which can be used to cover a variety of diameters of flanged pipe fitting members. However, the side and end portions of two-piece pipe fitting covers overlap when installed over pipe fittings. These overlapping portions often have large gaps which allow for seepage of water and other elements. The seepage of water and chemicals, for example, tends to break down the insulation which causes the piping to suffer corrosion, chemical attack and rust. Often, four or five pop rivets or screws are installed through the overlapping portions to close up the gaps. However, the gaps are usually left open without any screws, because of the difficulty in hand drilling screw holes into varied positions along the cover. Further problems are associated with rivets and screws when used with aluminum covers. The inside of aluminum covers are coated with epoxy paint in order to prevent corrosion of the aluminum from the alkali generated from within. When holes are drilled for the pop rivets or screws, the epoxy shield is broken which creates areas of potential corrosion. It has been known in certain instances where aluminum covers installed over pipe fitting insulation were completely eaten through from this type of corrosion in as little as three months after installation.